What's happening at Nervi-Conterno is game-changing.
We've been huge fans of the northern Piedmont since the store opened sixteen years ago. Still, Roberto Conterno's arrival in the region represents a new era for the wines.
Of course, what's happening at Nervi-Conterno shouldn't come as a surprise. Roberto Conterno is simply a force of nature and one of the most talented people working in wine today.
Today, we're happy to offer Nervi-Conterno's 2017 Gattinara at $47.95 per bottle and $43.95 in 4-packs.
This is a special vintage for the basic Gattinara bottling. Conterno did not produce any single-vineyard bottlings. The best grapes went into the Gattinara normale instead. It's clear that this elevated the 2017 to an incredibly high level.
In this vintage, it delivers staggering value. You get Conterno's world-class winemaking and a dynamite bottle of wine at an accessible price.
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The 2017 delivers serious breeding and a beautiful depth of complexity. It has the focus and intensity that announces just how skilled Conterno is. You get the brisk, silky signature of Gattinara with its beguiling weave of spice, game, dried rose petals, cherry and perfumed raspberry fruits, tar, leather, tobacco, and a fascinating thread of sun-scorched, rocky minerality that you get from its volcanic soils.
Conterno is arguably the greatest producer in Piedmont. He is the first producer in Barolo or Barbaresco to look north. As you would guess, Conterno chose wisely. Nervi is the historic producer of Gattinara with really impressive vineyard holdings, some dating back to 1679. He has been involved in the estate since 2011 when Erling Astrup, a wine collector, and friend of his, purchased the winery and sought his counsel. In 2018, he bought the estate outright.
In his tasting note, Antonio Galloni writes that the 2017 is "an overachieving wine that delivers the goods". That helps capture the level that the 2017 hit and the value that it offers. Don't miss this wine.
To order, email offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.
Ian McFadden
Director, Fine & Rare Wine
Crush Wine & Spirits
Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media: "The 2017 Gattinara is terrific. It will also give readers something to drink without waiting decades. In 2017, the Gattinara is a bit richer than it often is - the result of the warm dry year – but its profile is super-classic. Sweet pipe tobacco, mint, dried herbs, licorice, dried cherry and Alpine herbs fill out its ample frame effortlessly. I would give the 2017 a few years in bottle, but it won’t need more than that to start drinking well. In 2017, Roberto Conterno did not bottle his vineyard-designates. Instead, all the best lots went into the straight Gattinara, an overachieving wine that delivers the goods. I don’t expect the 2017 will be among the most long-lived wines here, but that will hardly be an issue for most readers."